United Nations Statistics Division Celebrates Second World Statistics Day
NEW YORK, 20 October (United Nations Statistics Division) — Today, statistical offices, universities, international organizations, the private sector and statisticians worldwide join the Statistics Division in celebrating the second Word Statistics Day, promoting the invaluable importance of data in the uplifting of lives: “Better data. Better lives.”
This theme is poignantly reflected in an excerpt from the message by United Nations Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon: “We need to ensure that everyone is counted, especially the most poor and vulnerable. No child’s birth shall remain unregistered. No incidence of disease, no matter how remote the location, shall remain unrecorded. We need local statistics to ensure that every child has access to education and we need global statistics to monitor the overall effects of climate change.”
Official statistics help decision makers formulate informed policies that impact millions of people. New and improved data sources, sound statistical methods, new technologies and strengthened statistical systems enable better decisions that result in better lives for all.
World Statistics Day was first celebrated on 20 October 2010, and earlier this year, the General Assembly officially designated 20 October as the World Statistics Day, to be celebrated every five years, starting in 2015.
World Statistics Day 2015 will be celebrated in more than 100 Member States and areas, with a cornucopia of activities, ranging from seminars to panel discussions, special lectures, creative competitions, songs, float parades, poster exhibitions, radio and television talks and advertisements, and receptions, with the Day’s logo, the “smiling statistician” on ATM machine receipts and the preparation of time capsules.
In recognition of the Day, the United Nations Statistics Division has a dedicated website (worldstatisticsday.org), which provides information on planned activities and supporting resources, video and logos of the “smiling statistician” in more than 40 languages. Also, the Division will be releasing the sixth edition of the report World’s Women 2015: Trends and Statistics. Prepared every five years, it presents the latest statistics and analysis on the status of women and girls in eight critical areas of policy concern.
Another activity in commemoration of World Statistics Day 2015 is the Data Visualization Challenge. The challenge was to create an infographic or dynamic visualization which answers a question relevant to development policy and incorporates the latest data from the 2015 Millennium Development Goals Report. Fifteen entries were received and the winning visualization was announced today on the dedicated website.
Statisticians today are not only celebrating the increasing significance being accorded to the role and relevance of statistics in the lives of the ordinary man, but also the significant statistical milestones achieved in the past five years, which culminated with the mandate to formulate the new global, regional and national indicator architecture for the United Nations 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development. Director of the Statistics Division, Stefan Schweinfest, in his World Statistics Day speech aptly said: “The 2030 Sustainable Development Agenda epitomizes the challenges, but also the opportunities ahead of us; the Agenda itself recognizes the centrality of statistics and data to development. […] Sustainable development will need to be supported by sustainable statistics.”
The Day creates a universal platform that enhances the visibility of the work and achievements of statisticians, raises awareness of the core values, professionalism and integrity enshrined in the discipline which creates official statistics and also celebrates the fundamental importance of statistical data in creating better lives.
For additional information, please visit worldstatisticsday.org.